


Our Realities

by camcChildofAthenaFBN



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms
Genre: And the Elizabeth incident, But before the whole Timelord thing, Jack being Jack, Jenny meets the Doctor again, Libraries, Post Donna Noble, The Doctor (Doctor Who) Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 18:08:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29920791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/camcChildofAthenaFBN/pseuds/camcChildofAthenaFBN
Summary: A short Doctor Who fanfic I wrote a while ago.Something is wrong. In a library in the 51st century, a mysterious force lurks in it. Suicide rates are going off the roof there. But why? What is truly lurking in the corners of a seemingly harmless library?Can the Doctor find out what it is? And who will he meet?
Relationships: The Doctor & Jenny
Kudos: 2





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I may or may not have written this for a school project originally. And there may or may not be a possibility of my teacher turning into a Whovian. So, umm, if my teacher somehow manages to read this, I just want to say that this is absolutely trash but the version I gave them was trashier.

** 51st century, Alpha Centauri **

It was a pleasant day. All the days had been unusually pleasant for a place that has the highest suicide rate in the galaxy. The woman's stormy eyes swept the museum, searching for any signs of disturbance. There were none.

She sighed.

It doesn't make sense. She'd searched every nook and cranny of the place and yet nothing stroked her as out of the ordinary: it reminded her of the time she had visited Clom. The inhabitants of the planet were pleasant enough at first, until you discovered they had a nasty habit of absorbing people into themselves. She'd barely made it off the planet with the stampede of locals chasing her. Shaking off the unpleasant memories of her time there, she proceeded to the exit.

The woman's light blonde hair shone in the darkness as her boots hit the ground. She wore an army green shirt and tight leather trousers. Around her waist was a weapon belt; it had knives in it along with some rope and several strange devices. She was just thinking about returning the next day like she had been for the past week, when a bloodcurdling scream pierced the air. Spinning towards the source, she ran to search for it.

The man who'd screamed was hugging something close to his body and shouting for help. On a closer examination, she could see that it was a body of a young boy. He couldn't be any older than ten. She rushed to the man's side and began scanning the boy's body with a device.

''He's dead.''

The man glared at her with a look of grief and denial. The woman had seen that look before; her father had the same pain on his face when he believed that she was dead. He still did.

''No. H-he can't be. My son can't be dead, h-he'll be alright, he'll be alright. He'll wake up and be alright like he always does.'' The man hugged the body closer to him, sobbing and murmuring into his son's ear.

''I'm sorry, but he's dead,'' she told him softly, it was better this way she decided, it would be cruel to give him false hope, ''he was killed by something that I believed was also responsible for the deaths of many others.''

He was still shaking his head, refusing to believe, with tears streaming down his face. Finally, he looked up said, ''Who are you?''

''I'm Jenny. And I promise you, I will find whatever killed your son.''


	2. The Encounter In the Library

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Doctor is investigating stuff as usual when he encounter some rather familiar faces.

**2 Days Later**

" Welcome to Alpha Centauri Museum and Library of Fiction. All visitors should sign in at the reception. We hope you have a pleasant experience during your visit.'' The speaker announced every now and again.

A man was heading towards the reception desk, weaving through the crowd in the entrance hall. He was rather tall and had dark brown hair that looked as if it had spent many hours hanging out of a car's window. Or perhaps chased by a rather excited dog. The navy-blue suit he was wearing was topped with a travelling coat one would normally associate with a detective. It was completed with a pair of well-worn sand shoes. Overall, it was not the sort of clothing you would see someone wear every day.

''State your species, name, rank and purpose of visit,'' the receptionist said in a monotone that wasn't uncommon for an android. She glanced at the man lazily.

''Timelord, the Doctor, doctor, not sure why I'm here but I have a feeling I need to look around,'' the Doctor replied. As he did so, a bracelet appeared around his wrist containing the data he had just given the receptionist.

''Teleportation device in case of emergencies. Have a nice day.''

Thanking her, the Doctor strode past a couple arguing in what sounded like Martian English. He studied his surroundings with his dark hazel eyes, searching for something. His hand reached for his pockets and he pulled out a strange instrument. To the untrained eye, it may look like an ordinary radio; however, if you were to look at it in great detail, it had a tiny radar dish attached to it. The machine also had a telephone, a fan, a speedometer and a toilet roll which was a rather unusual sight.

Ding!

The little dish was spinning around furiously until it suddenly came to a stop like a compass point drawn to a magnet.

''Ohhh. I was right,'' he said to himself, hitting the device in his hands, ''there's energy spikes all over the place! The amount of energy being released could power a star for 100 years. But where is it coming from?''

He glanced at the direction the little dish was pointing at and started to head there. The machine, or the timey-wimey-detector-that-goes-ding-when-there's-stuff as the Doctor called it, was rarely wrong - well, apart from that incident in 1969 - and it was telling him that a sudden burst of unknown energy had suddenly appeared. Reason was also telling him that there was something very wrong here: he just doesn't know what.

The Doctor was just about to enter a dismal-looking room when a deafening scream emerged from it. Instinctively, he ran towards the source of the spine-chilling sound and found a body surrounded by shattered glass. Next to the body was the young man whom he'd heard screamed.

''What happened?'' he demanded, ''who was she? Who was the person on the ground?''

''I-I don't know,'' the young man stammered, ''I was in the room and she just came out of nowhere. It's like she just fell from-''

Heavy footsteps interrupted the man; two familiar figures emerged out of the gloom.

''Who died?'' the woman demanded looking as if she'd been chased by a mob. Her companion went and examined the body. He was wearing a long travelling coat and had the rare combination of brilliant blue eyes with dark hair. His face was fine shaped as though sculpted. He frowned.

''A woman, 25 years old, human,'' he reported to her, ''lack of neural activity like the oth-''

''WHO ARE YOU?''

They all spun around and stared at the young man. He was flustered and looked like he regretted saying anything at all. The other occupants of the room (that were still alive) stared at one another.

''I'm Captain Jack Harkness,'' the woman's companion volunteered in a clear American accent.

The woman paused hesitantly to maintain eye-contact with Jack then said, ''My name is Jenny. Jenny Doctor.''

They all gazed at the Doctor expectantly: he cleared his throat.

''I'm the Doctor. And before can say anything,'' he shot Jenny and Captain Jack Harkness a look, ''this isn't my fault. I swear. I was just going around and then my timey-wimey detector got a bit excited, so I thought, it's just some energy spikes shouldn't do any harm. Honestly, I swear, I didn't know anything about the deaths - and Jack, who is your new girlfriend? What sort of a name is Jenny Doctor anyway?''

Jenny stepped into a spot of sunlight in front of him and the Doctor's eyes widened in disbelief. No. It couldn't be! She was dead, she was -

''The sort of name your daughter would have, Dad.''

Jenny smiled. It was the sort of smile that one would genuinely give you when you were given a pleasant surprise. He continued to gape at her and stuttered, ''But-but you were dead! General Cobb shot you and you died on Messaline! How are you alive?''

Jack came up to Jenny, gave the Doctor a grin, and told him, ''From what I got out of her, she just woke up. Then she stole a shuttle to go and see the Universe, like you stole that TARDIS of yours.'' He gave Jenny a triumphant look and raised his eyebrow as if daring her to contradict him.

''I didn't steal it. I just sort of ...took compensation for my death.'' She gave them a withering glare. ''Anyway, I don't know. The guy who was there at the time said that I just breathed out a puff of gold and woke up. That was before I kicked him and went to the shuttle.'' She muttered the last part lamely, ''Where is that friend of your anyway? Donna?''

He flinched away from her. The memories Donna brought a fresh wave of pain every time. The wound was still raw and jagged, he didn't even get to say goodbye although he knew that it as for the best.

THUD!

The young man behind them had collapsed. The Doctor felt slightly guilty for forgetting about him as they rushed towards his unconscious form. Jenny grabbed the young man's wrist and steadily began to check his pulse; Jack pulled out a scanner to check him for signs of any damage or injury.

''He's fine, just unconscious,'' they could hear the but in his voice. The Doctor gestured for him to keep going. ''But there's something wrong. The reading on the scanner says that there's little brain activity. Doctor, it's like his brain just shuts itself down.''

At Jack's grim words, the Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and began to scan the building. A stab of fear shot down his spine at the conclusion he'd reached. He met their eyes with apprehension. They must have seen the dread on his face because they moved towards him with worried expressions on their faces.

''What is it Doctor? What's wrong?''

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair. He didn't want to lose Jack or his daughter like he had with his companions, like Rose, like Martha, like Donna. Donna. She was his friend, the one who held him back whenever he went too far, who would sass at him every time she didn't agree, the most important woman to some. And he lost her like everyone else, left her without any memory of their friendship even if it was to save her life.

''This is bad. The worst possible situation with a truckload of bad added to it,'' he said finally, ''It isn't just him that's unconscious, it's everyone apart from us and the things that caused this. There's also a huge burst of unidentifiable energy around the perimeter, shutting down all the transport and teleportation device. They are preparing for a feast.''

Jenny searched his face with her stormy eyes, ''Who are they?''

A deadly silence fell over them as his friends waited for the dreaded answer.

''Corpus.''

***

''Doctor! What are the Corpus? You can't just run off like that!''

After announcing the culprit rather unceremoniously, the Doctor had ran off leaving them - figuratively - in the dust. His friends had then had to run after him, tripping over several oblivious forms along the way. They were now standing in front of a door marked 'Library' and the Doctor was scanning the door with an intense expression on his face. Upon hearing the words, he glanced up at them.

''I can show you what they are, it'll help you understand better.''

He raised his sonic screwdriver. A faint blue light emitted from it as he waved it around. Out of nowhere, dark transparent figures appeared around them; they flickered in and out of sight as he lowered his hand.

''Those are the Corpus?'' Jenny asked eyeing on of the flickering forms.

''Yes. You can usually find them everywhere, on every world. They, the Corpus, feeds on electrical signals from the brain and that causes energy to be drawn into one spot hence the spikes of energy. The victim would then begin to notice things. Every dark alleyway becomes a crime scene, that sort of thing. They're harmless in small numbers because the brain can usually recover, and if one of them accidentally overfed then your mind shields itself by producing mild hallucination. Like when you can see shapes in clouds or faces on cars. It means that they're near or have just finished feeding on you. But I've never seen an infestation this large, and from the spikes of energy everywhere, I would say that there are millions of them.''

He ran a hand through his hair, then returned to trying to open the door.

''So, are we safe Doctor?'' Jack said to him.

''For now.'' He groaned in frustration, ''Arggh! I can't open the door it's wood!''

Jenny leaned over the Doctor who was crouching down and scanning one of the bolts. ''Your screwdriver doesn't do wood?''

Jack smirked behind her back; his eyes told them that he knew something and that he had seen it a dozen times before.

''OI! Don't dis the sonic!''

The Doctor kicked the door in frustration. The shimmering creatures were getting closer to them and he had a feeling that they won't be left alive if they did reach them. He wished Donna was still here: she would know exactly what to do at times like this. The Corpus were getting closer.

''What happens if they get to us?''

He glanced up to see Jenny. ''You saw what happened with the others. With that many, the brain won't be able to cope and then we would be driven mad with the desire to end our lives.'' He paused painfully. ''I'm sorry, I thought I might be able to save you. Guess I was wrong.''

''Yeah, but we can't exactly die and Jenny is part Time Lord so what then?'' Jack questioned the Doctor.

''Wellllll. They would probably use us as a food source until they get bored of us.''

Jack pulled a piece of glinting metal out of his pocket. He began attaching it to the wooden door behind them. Pushing a button on it, the door which once stood between them and safety disappeared.

''Molecule shifters!'' The Doctor exclaimed. The Corpus was almost onto them. They ran through the door; then, Jack removed the molecule shifter and the door rematerialized. ''You could've used that sooner.''

''I wasn't sure if it would work, it was damaged when I crashed-landed.'' Jack spun around to study the room. ''Why are we in the library?''

The library was an impressive structure. Bookshelves rose around the room, reaching for the stained-glass dome above them. The afternoon sun spilled into the room lighting up every nook and cranny. Books gleamed on every shelf like jewels waiting to be admired, the old and the new together. Comfy sofas separated the walls of books, creating maze-like paths. Dull booths stood in the corner of the room so that the visitors may download books directly into their minds. It would have been something close to paradise if it weren't for the bodies on the floor. They were scattered all over the place like sprinkles on a cake.

The Doctor answered, ''The Corpus feds on brainwaves, but they also manipulate imagination which is what causes the victims to go mad in the first place. The library is the most secure place because the dreams of generations are hidden on those shelves. The people on the floor in here are the least affected, the influence on them will be less powerful. Books are the ultimate weapons: words have power, imagination is the best shield for the mind and books provide both. They can't physically go in here because pure imagination is like poison for them, that's why they have to feed on others.''

''So what's the plan?'' Jenny asked.

He paced around the room muttering to himself. ''Think. Think! What could stop them? Books can slow them down. Imagination is poison. Arggh! But there's no way to expose them to it. Think!'' Then, out of the corner of his eye, something caught his attention: it was a booth. He grinned at his companions. ''The booths!''

Jack blinked at him in confusion. ''What about them?''

''They download books into your conscious mind! And the Corpus can't stand it. Download all the books into their minds and BAM! Kill them stone dead!'' The Doctor hit himself on the head. ''Oh. I am so stupid!'' Realisation dawned on their faces. ''We just need to enhance the signal from the booths to cover the area of the building and that's it!''

''Let's do it then.''

***

The Doctor, Jenny and Captain Jack Harkness stood behind the railing. Below them were the Corpus. They'd put the plan into action by using the machinery and programming from the booths to set a trap. All they had to do was wait.

 **Doctor** , a chorus of voices hissed.

''Hello.'' He waved at them. ''You know my name? How?''

 **We are old, Doctor. We know many things** , they answered.

''Well then. Why are there so many of you here? You live on inhabited planets with a proper ecosystem, so why here? Why did you come here? It's just a rock with a museum and a library on it!''

There was a paused. **We did not come here.**

''What do you mean? Of course you did!''

**We come from here.**

The Doctor froze, a sense of déjà-vu creeping up on him. ''How?''

**A millennia ago, this planet was a paradise. We lived with the species of this planet together in peace.**

''What happened?'' Jenny asked.

**The cracks in the corners of reality came and what once existed was no longer there. We fled into the safety of the ground and slept until the Silence had passed. The Universe is cracked, Doctor, and through it there will be silence.**

''So a long time ago, something came to your planet and wiped out its inhabitants. And you're the survivors.'' Jack said to them.

**We survived and now we shall feast.**

''Let us help you.'' The Doctor looked at them determinedly. He could save everyone without bloodshed this time. It didn't have to be like the Time War where he had no choice but to destroy them. There didn't have to be blood. Something like hope began to grow inside him. ''We can find a new planet for you and your children to live in peace with the inhabitants. To co-exist peacefully. Take the offer and leave these people in peace. I give you one chance.''

 **We decline Doctor. This is our world and they are our food**.

Numbness started to spread through him like wildfire through a forest. They could've just left. Then he wouldn't have to do this. He raised his head. ''Then what happens next is your undoing.'' The words were bitter and as they left him, they felt cold and detached of all emotions.

**We know you would not destroy us Doctor. You have mercy. And it led to the destruction of your people and your friends. You would not do it because you do not want your companions to see the monster inside.**

''I've lost too much.'' His voice was filled with grief and anger. ''And you're right. People die because of my mercy! I gave all of them a chance like I did to you and where did that leave me? Alone. They suffered because of ME!'' He screamed the last few words as tears ran down his face. ''No more.''

The Doctor raised his sonic screwdriver and pressed it. Images began to flash in front of him. Of his friends. Rose leaning into him and laughing at their first Christmas together. Martha standing in front of the Master, believing in him. Donna and his daughter on Messaline. More images flooded his mind of his companions. In the distance, he could hear the screams of the Corpus.

**Silence, Doctor! Silence! The Pandorica will open and Silence will fall!**

''At the moment, all of the books in this library are being uploaded into your minds. Every. Single. One.'' He heard himself said it to them, ''You wanted to feast. So now you can.''

Lowering his screwdriver, he walked away from the sound of falling bodies. He walked and walked, though each step felt heavier the next. He walked through the stirring crowd and passed the receptionist. He didn't stop walking until he reached his TARDIS.

It was parked just outside the museum. He was just about to enter it when a voice stopped him.

''Doctor!''

It was Jenny. His eyes met hers as she caught her breath. Finally, she said, ''Can I go with you?''

Memories flashed before his eyes. This time of his companion's end. He remembered the heartbroken look on Rose's face when he had to leave her. The pain in Martha's eyes as she walked away from him. The grief in Donna when she had to forget. The deaths of so many when they had relied on him. And Rose. Always Rose.

''No.''

She searched his face then asked, ''Why?''

''Because bad things happen to people who travel with me and you're my daughter.''

''What about Donna? What happened to her?'' Jenny held his gaze.

''She became a Human-Time Lord. I had to make her forget about her time with me.'' He turned away from her. ''So she wouldn't die. Anyway! Where's Jack?''

Startled by the sudden change of subject, she answered, ''He left saying something about Torchwood.''

Closing his eyes, he nodded. The Doctor closed the door behind him and ran towards the controls. He flipped the lever and off it went.

VWORP! VWORP! VWORP!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't like how this ends but I was stumped out of ideas for an ending. And it's extremely hard to understand or write a character as complex as the Doctor, or to sympathise with the guilt and loneliness that he always tries so hard to hide. I'm not sure any words I can put down will be big enough to explain it all and the whirlpool of emotions that he must be feeling.


End file.
